Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Friday that the Constitution was in danger when the Congress imposed an emergency in the country and made all efforts to change it.
He also said that there are indications that the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will secure over 400 seats in the Lok Sabha elections. The first phase of voting for 102 parliamentary constituencies spread over 21 states and Union Territories was held on Friday.
Speaking at a press conference here, he said, “We talk of ‘400 paar,’ and now there are indications that the figure can go even further…The opposition is showing signs of frustration at defeat; they say only one thing: the Constitution will change. Who is talking about changing the Constitution?”
“The Prime Minister and all of us made it clear that this would not happen. The Constitution was in danger during the rule of Congress; when Congress imposed an emergency, the Constitution was in danger,” he said.
Further attacking the Congress, he said, “During the entire emergency, there was an effort to change the Constitution. This is their history. The Congress party made all the efforts to change the Constitution, and the leftist parties were with them; today, Lalu Yadav is with them. The Constitution is in danger not from Prime Minister Narendra Modi or the BJP but from them.”
Bihar will witness polling for 40 Lok Sabha seats across all seven phases.
Voting on four seats–Jamui, Nawada, Gaya, and Aurangabad–was held in phase 1 on Friday.
The state will witness polling on five seats from Phases 2 to 5. In Phases 6 and 7, elections will be held for eight seats each.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the NDA, composed of the BJP, JD (U) (Janata Dal-United), and LJP (Lok Janshakti Party), secured victory by winning 39 out of 40 seats.
The BJP won 17 seats with a vote share of 24.1 per cent, while JD (U) secured victory on 16 seats with a vote share of 22.3 per cent. LJP had won six seats with a vote share of 8 per cent.
While the Mahagathbandhan, led by RJD Rashtriya Janata Dal), INC (Indian National Congress), and RLSP (Radhtriya Lok Samta Party), only managed to win one seat.